Coatings



Get. 19, 1965 J. A. NOEL 3,212,106

commas Filed July 18, 1963 INVENTOR. JOHN AUSTIN NOEL BY 7:1, .5 litz/ ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,212,106 COATINGS John Austin Noel, St. Mathews, Ky., assignor to American Radiator & Standard Sanitary Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed July 18, 1963, Ser. No. 295,884 3 Claims. (Cl. 4-69) This invention relates to plumbing fixtures and a method for manufacturing plumbing fixtures in which a protective coating is applied to the surfaces thereof.

In the manufacture of plumbing fixtures, such as a water closet for example, it is desirable that a porcelainized coating be applied to the entire water closet including inside water contacting surfaces to provide a surface which does not encourage bacterial growth and which is easily cleaned. In the trapway area it has sometimes been rather difficult to provide a uniform coating due to its intricate curvatures. For the same reason it has also been difiicult to form the trapway with the cast configuration desired. This has resulted in high cost of manufacturing and the configuration obtained as well as the internal coating has not always been satisfactory.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a method for making a water closet which is of a simple design and which is easy to manufacture.

Another object is to provide a plastic plumbing fixture and a coating therefore to protect against deterioration of the plastic due to the exposure of the fixture to water abrasive action of cleansers and also to protect against bacterial growth.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a plumbing fixture to which a protective coating can be easily applied.

Another object is to provide a plumbing fixture which is light in weight and economical to manufacture.

A further object is to provide a plumbing fixture which is initially formed in two or more pieces which are subsequently joined together.

A further object is to provide a plumbing fixture which is initially made in two or more pieces to facilitate application of a protective coating.

A further object is to provide a plumbing fixture which is initially made in two sections each of which forms substantially one half of the plumbing fixture housing.

These and other objects and features of the invention will appear as the description of the particular physical embodiment selected to illustrate the invention progresses.

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a water closet bowl assembly.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional elevation taken along the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged partial sectional elevation taken along the line 33 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged partial sectional elevation taken along the line 44 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 5 is a view somewhat similar to FIGURE 4, but showing a modified construction.

FIGURE 6 illustrates schematically a lap joint by which the two halves of the housing may be joined together.

FIGURE 7 illustrates schematically and alternatively a tongue and groove joint by which the two halves of the housing may be joined together.

Before explaining the present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the ice invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

Referring to the drawings, a water closet bowl assembly housing 9 comprises a bowl 10, a support stand 12, and a flush water inlet means 14. The flush water inlet means 14 comprises an opening 16 adapted to receive flush water from a tank or other suitable source (not shown) and a chamber 18 in communication with the opening 16. The chamber 18 is in communication with a rim passageway or conduit 20 extending around the upper edge of the bowl 10 while openings such as at 22 are provided in the rim conduit 20 for admitting flush water to the upper portion of the bowl 10.

The conduit 20 may be made integral with the water closet bowl assembly housing 9 or it may be a separate, prefabricated piece suitably held in place along the inner upper rim of the housing 9. The conduit 20 may be formed, e.g., as in FIG. 5, by a prefabricated member 19 cemented in place, and having openings 22a similar in function to openings 22 shown in FIGURE 4. FIGURES 3, 4 and 5 illustrate how the conduit might be made of plastic tubing and held in place with an adhesive or a press or interference fit with the aid of upper and lower projections 21 and 23 respectively formed on the housing 9. In order to provide communication between the interior of the conduit 20 and the chamber 18, "a suitable opening such as at 25 is provided in the conduit 20, means such as an adhesive are provided to form a watertight seal therebetween.

Flush water passes from the chamber 18, through the opening 25, conduit 20, openings 22 to the bowl 10. Upon leaving the bowl 10 flush water passes through an opening 26 in the bottom of the bowl 10 and then to discharge by way of a trapway 30. As will be noted in FIG- URE 2, the trapway 30 initially directs the flush water upwardly, then through an approximately degree turn, and then downwardly to a separate external soil pipe connection (not shown).

In FIGURE 2, it is shown how the trapway outlet 36 may be spaced from the rear 33 of the bowl assembly housing 9 to facilitate connecting the trapway outlet to an external drain line leading therefrom. In a wall hung fixture, the trapway outlet would open out at the rear 33 of the fixture rather than through the bottom as shown in FIGURE 2.

The trapway 30 conducts flush water from the opening 26 at the bottom of the bowl 10 to a drain outlet 37 while maintaining a predetermined level of water in the bowl 10 when it is being flushed. The trapway 30 may be formed of any desirable configuration but preferably the downleg of the trapway provides a tortuous path for the flush water to enhance the syphoning characteristics of the water closet. v

The bowl assembly housing 9 may be made of a suitable plastic material. Reinforcing fibers may be added to the plastic when additional strengthening is requisite to design and function. The bowl housing 9 may be provided with a coating along portions thereof to properly maintain the surface of the plastic in a satisfactory condition.

An example of a plastic which may be used for making the bowl assembly housing 9 is polyester. Basically polyester resins are the polycondensation products of dicarboxylic acids with dihydric alcohols but in a broader view of the field of polyester resins includes different kinds of condensation products. Unsaturated polyesters may be fabricated in to reinforced plastics using reinforcements such as for example, glass, asbestos, synthetic, cellulosic, sisel and other fibers by employing various methods such as for example, by hand lay-up, spray-up, preform or matmolding, premix, vacuum or pressure bag molding, matched metal molding and other methods. The resin may be mixed with the reinforcing fiber, a filler, and a catalyst in a suitable mixer such-as a blender. The resins can also be formulated intoputty-like premixes that can be molded in conventional transfer and compression presses.

The polyester resins may be created by reacting a dihydric alcohol and a dibasic acid, either or both of which contain a double bonded pair of carbon atoms. The alcohol and the acid are heated to sufficiently high temperatures to react, split out water, and form ester linkages. The double bonds in the unsaturated polyester resin thus formed render the material capable of subsequent cross linking. This may be accomplished by reacting the unsaturated polyester resin with a polymerizable monomer, such as styrene for example, under the influence of a special catalyst system, such as peroxide for example. In this reaction, the double bonds of the unsaturated polyester resin connect with those of the monomer (described as copolymerization or cross-linking) to form a thermoset which when fully cured, is insoluble and infusible.

The two basic ingredients of the unsaturated polyester resin; that is, the dihydric alcohols and the dibasic acids, and the polymerizable monomer with which it is crosslinked are all capable of a good deal of variations. For the dihydric alcohols, the glycols of ethylene, propylene, 1,3- and 3,3-butylene, diethylene, and dipropylene, each with its own special characteristics, may be used. The unsaturated dibasic acid may be maleic anhydric or fumaric acid. Saturated dibasic-acid components, such as isophthalic, adipic, azelaic acids, and phthalic anhydride are also used but a good deal of variation is possible.

Other examples of thermosetting plastic materials which may be used for the water closet bowl housing in addition to the polyester mentioned heretofore are resins such as epoxy and phenolic.

Examples of thermoplastic resins which may be used are rigid polyvinyl chloride, acetal, nylon, polycarbonate, acrylic, chlorinated polyether, and others. Some of these plastics, depending on strength requirements and method of forming, may be provided with fillers and/or reinforcing fibers, if desired, such as glass, asbestos, synthetic, cellulosic, sisal, and other suitable fibers, and can be formed into the desired shape by common methods, e.g., injection molding, blow molding and thermoforming.

It is to be noted that the use of a plastic for the housing 9 offers an advantage in that it is relatively light in weight as compared to the more conventional vitreous china. However, to manufacture a plumbing fixture out of plastic thereare certain problems which have to be overcome. For example, certain plastics are hydroscopic to a major degree and the surface tends to lift, become pourous, and to roughen when exposed to water and abrasive .action of cleansers. Such a surface is undesirable for waste passages and for the interior of a water closet because it tends to become unsightly and unsanitary while encouraging the growth of bacteria. By providing a protective coating, such as polyurethane for example, to the surface of the bowl and the waste passage, such deterioration of the plastic surface and the encouragement of bacterial growth with be discouraged. An example of a coating for this purpose is a liquid urethane elastomer, such as one manufactured by E. I. duPont de Nemours & Co., Inc., which is a fully saturated polymer containing 4.0 to 4.3% of isocyanate groups by weight and which is sold under the trade name and trademark ADIPRENE L. Other examples of coatings are urethane paints, acrylics, vinyls, HYPALON which is E. I. duPont de Nemours & Co., Inc.s trademark for chlorinated polyethylene, and others.

The coating may be applied by casting, brushing, flow coating, or preferably by spraying. In certain cases, however, it would be difficult to apply such a coating to the internal surfaces of a plumbing fixture due to its intricate internal configuration. For example, it would be difficult to apply the coating to the internal surfaces of the trapway 30 shown in FIGURE 2. If, however, the toilet bowl assembly 9 is initially made in two or more pieces, such as the two halves separated by a longitudinal plane along the line 2-2 in FIGURE 1, it is possible to apply the coating to the internal surfaces of the trapway and subsequently join the two halves together, such as for example by means of adhesives, solvent cementing, or heat welding.

By using the above method of construction it is possible to easily apply a protective coating to all the internal surfaces of the trapway 30 and bowl which are in contact with the water because all the internal passageways will be exposed and readily accessible before the two housing halves are joined together. Since the inner surfaces of the bowl 10 are easily accessible, the coating on the inside of the bowl 10 may be applied either before or after the two halves of the bowl assembly housing are joined together.

In accordance with statements hereinbefore set forth, the water closet housing 9, that is the two halves thereof, may initially be made of a thermoplastic, such as those previously listed herein, by injection molding or by thermoforming. The two housing halves may also be made of thermosetting plastics, such as those previously listed herein, by hand lay-up, spray up, preform or premix molding techniques.

The various heretofore listed methods of forming the housing are well known by those skilled in the art. Therefore only a brief description of each method will be set forth. As for injection molding, by which thermoplastic resins are formed, coarse granules of resin are periodically forced into the heating zone of a cylinder by the advance of a piston or plunger. A torpedo or spreader provides for a relatively thin layer of material to move past the heating cylinder wall, rapid and uniform softening being thereby obtained. The molten plastic is forced through a nozzle and into a mold, distributed by runners into the cavity or cavities of the mold. The piece or housing section hardens under pressure so that it is filled out completely. On opening or parting of the mold, the piece or housing section is then ejected.

Thermoplastic resins may also be formed by thermoforming wherein sheet stock is converted into a molded shape. The sheet stock is softened by warming and formed, such as by vacuum for example, into the desired contour.

As to the method for forming thermosetting reinforced resins, lay-up consists of placing the reinforcing fibers and the resin in a mold such as by manual means while squeegees or rollers work in the resin to remove air. Layers of materials are added for thickness and strength.

In the spray-up method, reinforcing fibers and resin are simultaneously deposited in a mold. The reinforcing fibers may be in the form of roving which is fed through a chopper and ejected into a resin stream which is directed at the mold through a spray system. The reinforcing fiber-resin mix is rolled by hand to remove air, to lay down the fibers, and to smooth the surface.

In preform'or mat molding, a mat and fabric are tailored for the mold by conventional textile cutting techniques. If the shape of the object is too complex to use a mat or fabric, a preform is used. A preform is a mat of chopped strands bonded together in the shape of the end product by one of two basic processes, air preforming or water slurry. Mat or preform reinforcement is combined with resin at a matched-die molding press where heat and pressure is applied.

In the premix method of forming reinforced thermosetting resins, prior to molding, reinforcement fibers, chopped spun glass roving for example, is thoroughly mixed with resin, filler, pigment and catalyst. The premix is formed into accurately weighed charges and placed in a mold cavity under heat and pressure.

As for the means for joining the two halves of the housing together as set forth hereinbefore, several types of known solvent cements and adhesives are commercially available that are suitable for joining plastic parts depending on the type of plastic. Joining by heat welding is adapted for thermoplastic parts. The surfaces to be joined are first heated such as for example by a hot wire or plate or by a torch and slightly melted and then joined together with pressure.

Means may be provided to facilitate alignment and to strengthen the joint of the two halves of the housing 9 such as for example by providing a lap joint 40 shown in FIGURE 6 or a tongue and groove joint 42 shown in FIGURE 7 between the butting edges.

The preformed rim conduit 20, previously described, may be secured in place simultaneously with or after the joining together of the two halves of the housing.

Although the housing 9 is shown as being divided along the line 22 of FIGURE 1, it is to be understood that the housing may be divided along any convenient lines or planes of the housing 9 to form any number of sections as desirable.

Although the above description and the drawings pertain to a water closet, it is to be understood that the principles of the present invention are equally applicable to lavatory sinks and other plumbing fixtures encountering similar problems with respect to the heretofore mentioned manufacturing and sanitary conditions.

From the above description it will be evident that, according to the invention, it is possible to form a plumbing fixture which can be made economically from a relatively light weight plastic, which is durable, easier to ship and less subject to chipping as compared to conventional vitreous china, and which, because of the protective coating applied thereto, is sanitary and resistant to deterioration such as lifting or roughening of the surface due to exposure to water.

The invention hereinabove described may be varied in construction within the scope of the claims, for the particular device selected to illustrate the invention is but one of many possible embodiments of the same. The invention, therefore, is not to be restricted to the precise details of the structure shown and described.

What is claimed is:

1. A plumbing fixture configured to define a water bowl and a trapway communicating with a lower portion of said bowl; and a protective coating on the inner surfaces of said bowl and trayway; said fixture being formed by two housing sections, each of which forms substantially one half of the plumbing fixture; said housing sections being substantial mirror images of one another joined together on the vertical centerline of the fixture.

2. The fixture of claim 1 wherein the housing sections are formed of a plastic, and the protective coating has anti-abrasive and anti-bacterial growth properties.

3. The fixture of claim 1 and further including means for introducing flush water into upper interior portions of the bowl; each of said housing sections having an inwardly projecting flange, said flanges aligning with one another on a common horizontal plane to define a continuous upper rim for the bowl; said water-introducing means including a conduit separate from the housing sections; said conduit fitting within the bowl just beneath the rim; said conduit extending entirely around the bowl perimeter and having water discharge openings at spaced points therealong for directing water downwardly along the bowl interior surface.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,164,840 12/15 Miller 1859 2,344,649 3/44 Sloan 469 2,873,519 2/59 Milne 29-463 2,979,812 4/61 Russell 29-463 3,038,170 6/62 OBrien 479 3,102,274 9/63 Witvrouw 469 OTHER REFERENCES Dr. Preiswerk et al.: Edward, Eth xylines publication, Electrical Manufacturing, pages 78- 81, 164 and 166, copy in Group 160.

Moss, C. J.: Araldite publication, British Plastics, November 1948, pages 521-527, copy in Group 160.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Primary Examiner.

EDWARD V. BENHAM, SAMUEL ROTHBERG,

LEWIS J. LENNY, Examiners. 

1. A PLUMBING FIXTURE CONFIGURED TO DEFINE A WATER BOWL AND A TRAPWAY COMMUNICATING WITH A LOWER PORTION OF SAID BOWL; AND A PROTETIVE COATING ON THE INNER SURFACES OF SAID BOWL AND TRAYWAY; SAID FIXTURE BEING FORMED BY TWO HOUSING SECTIONS, EACH OF WHICH FORMS SUBSTANTIALLY ONE HALF OF THE PLUBMING FIXTURE; SAID HOUSING SECTIONS BEING SUBSTANTIAL MIRROR IMAGES OF ONE ANOTHER JOINED TOGETHER ON THE VERTICAL CENTERLINE OF THE FIXTURE. 